Danny Castillo irked by UFC on FOX 3 booing

Cholish, a full-time commodities broker in his other life, might have stopped the unheralded Mitch Clarke in his octagon debut. But he was going against a fighter with far more high-level experience and a strong pedigree – or so went conventional thinking.

Castillo didn’t buy that, and he ramped up his training in Las Vegas, where his longtime squad Team Alpha Male was working on the set of “The Ultimate Fighter: Live.” He knew Cholish was underrated.

And he was right.

“That kid is tough, and he has a bright future,” Castillo told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio).

You might say that because he was so well-prepared, though, there was a lack of fireworks when they met this past weekend at UFC on FOX 3. He and Cholish largely canceled out each other on the feet, and neither was able to do anything significant on the mat. It was a well-matched affair.

“Had I not seen any tapes of him, it might have been a different outcome,” Castillo said.

Still, after three rounds, Castillo impressed the judges enough to win every round on the scorecards. The audience at IZOD Center in East Rutherford, N.J., was a different story.

Boos started in the first round and continued until the decision was read.

“In the past, that would have bothered me, but when you’re in there, there’s only two guys in the cage,” Castillo said. “The outside doesn’t really matter.”

At the same time, he’d like it if the audience gave him more of chance.

“I was trying to finish the fight,” Castillo said. “It’s just for some reason, I couldn’t put it together, and it wasn’t as exciting as some of the New Jersey fans expected.”

It didn’t help that his fight was preceded by a trio of exciting bouts, and after him a pair of flyweight bouts lit up the crowd. Still, he wishes fans would understand that those kind fights are frequently won with technique and smarts rather than brute force.

“Those fighters that say, ‘I love to get punched in the face?’ I do not,” he said. “That’s my least favorite thing to do.”

Fighting in front of a crowd adds another element, as well. After all, they’re not just competing in a gym before a few training partners. Thousands are watching. It’s the ones who want to see a car crash who present problems.

“Sometimes I wish the general fan would educate themselves about the sport instead of just booing,” Castillo said. “Having my fights on TV has brought my respect to other sports. When I’m watching baseball, you hear the boos. It’s tough to do that at an elite level, but let alone in front of a thousand people. I think most people don’t understand that.”

Still, Castillo is happy he got the win, which was his third straight in the UFC. He’s now 4-1 since migrating from the now-defunct WEC.

This most recent fight was tough, more so than most would imagine.

“I haven’t watched the fight yet, but as soon as we were done and the bell rang, I grabbed him and told him how much I respected him and thought he was a really tough dude,” he said. “Anyone who can hold down a full-time job and get to the elite level of the UFC is a really mentally tough and physically tough. I told him it wasn’t the best fight out of the two of us, but you’re a tough dude.”

MMAjunkie.com Radio broadcasts Monday-Friday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) live from Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino’s Race & Sports Book. The show is hosted by “Gorgeous” George Garcia, MMAjunkie.com lead staff reporter John Morgan and producer Brian “Goze” Garcia. For more information or to download past episodes, go to www.mmajunkie.com/radio.

From Our Partners

The Latest

As the UFC 189 tour made its last stop in Dublin, featherweight champ Jose Aldo was met with a torrent of abuse from the Irish fans. It might have been unpleasant, but it might also have been just what he needed.